A gin and tonic is one of the world’s simplest and most popular cocktails, but British celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal believes we’ve been making them wrong all this time.
The Michelin star chef revealed his secrets to creating the perfect G&T and explained that tonic water should not be added until the last possible moment.
Blumenthal says that a wide-rimmed glass is essential in order to bring out the full aromas of the gin.
He says the type of tonic you choose is as important as the gin itself, suggesting you opt for a tonic with a low sugar content and a high quality gin.
The Fat Duck owner, who has recently launched his own citrus sherbet lazy gin at Waitrose, also explained that the tonic should only be poured after a citrus fruit garnish has been added.
Ideally, this should be something simple like a slice of lemon.
This specific order of assembly is crucial, says Blumenthal, in order for the flavours to fully absorb prior to the addition of the soft fizzy drink.
This also means that the cocktail shouldn’t require much stirring, he added.
While the chef usually advises adding plenty of ice to the cocktail, he explained that his new citrus sherbet lazy gin tastes best without and suggests pairing it with the Fever-tree Mediterranean Tonic on its own with no garnish.
The release of Blumenthal’s new gin follows a line of flavoured alcohol products produced for Waitrose, including an earl grey and lemon gin, a cherry bakewell vodka and a fruit cup spirit, infused with eight botanical flavours.